Build Thread - XCell Whiplash Gas

[carey shurley]

So we're going to build a pre-production Whiplash Gas model

Just to clarify, this is NOT a production model. It is Pre-Production Model #2. It is possible some details may change before it goes into production.

There are significant parts shared between WG and the Whiplash Nitro version as well as the Electric version.

The documented process will take far longer than the actual build, the model is pretty simple to assemble but I'm doing a video as well as a document along with this thread so its going to move a little slow initially.

with that, lets build WG!

Note: You will need to be logged in for the photos to be visible

[carey shurley]

Here are the the cross plates in the frame assembly. The bottom motor mount plate, the gyro mount plate and the battery/radio plate. The mounts are aluminum except for the gyro plate mounts which are composite


chassis plates

to mount the plates you will use 4 of the 0032 self tapping screws, 6 of the 0061 M3x8 socket bolts and 6 of the 0064-3 button head bolts

the composite mounts attach to the gyro plate as shown. The gyro plate is reversible so these can go on either side as shown


gyro plate mounts

attach the mounts to the gyro plate using the self tapping screws as shown. These can be fully tightened at this time using CA glue


gyro plate mount screws

the battery plate mounts are positioned on the battery plate as shown. The plate is reversible so they can mount on either side as shown


battery plate mounts

attach the mounts to the battery plate using the button head bolts as shown. These can be fully tightened at this time using blue thread lock


battery plate mount bolts

the motor plate mounts are positioned on the motor plate as shown. This plate is directional and the mounts must be positioned as shown


motor plate mounts

attach the mounts to the motor plate using the socket head bolts as shown. These cannot be tightened until a later step as the holes are slotted to allow engine positioning based on the gear ratio used.


motor plate mount bolts

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Next Step

Fuel Tank Prep

[carey shurley]

This step assembles the fuel tank for later installation into the chassis

These are the parts needed, since the kit isn't completed, I'm not sure if the clunk and vent will be included. I know it will contain only one additional fitting. The fuel tubing shown normally is supplied with Zenoah motors


Fuel Tank parts

If you've followed this forum, you know I have a very specific tank plumbing method which involves installing a fuel feed, vent, return and fill. The tank has the return/overflow molded in. The kit includes fittings for the feed and vent. I've added an additional fitting for the fill.

Here's where the two fittings will be installed


Marked for fittings

The correct size to drill for the fittings is .19" or a number 11 drill. First drill a pilot hole with a smaller drill and then drill with the larger drill. Use a razor knife to clean up the edges and make sure to empty out the tank of any junk


Fitting holes drilled

An easy way to install the fittings is to push some small flexible tubing through the drilled holes, push the fitting in the end and then pull the tube back out. Do this carefully and the fitting will at least partially go through the hole and you can pull them out to fully seat them


Install fittings

Once you have the fitting in and seated, use the washers and nuts to tighten the fitting. I usually use some RTV on these


Fittings installed

Assemble the fuel feed/clunk as shown using the viton tubing that comes with the zenoah RC motors. Cut the tubing 6-1/2" long


Assemble fuel feed/clunk

Now, push the clunk into the tank. This is a VERY tight fit. you may need to bevel the outside edge of the tank hole to get this in, but it will fit


Insert clunk into tank

Now take the tank seal grommet and pus it over the fuel tank fitting as shown. Take a wide blade screwdriver or preferably something wide/flat and made of plastic or wood and push the inner lip of the seal inside the tank


Install tank grommet

Install the remaining washer/nut over the fuel tank fitting and tighten the grommet to seal the tank. There will be a threaded segment of the fitting protruding

NOTE: the threads on this fitting are NOT the same as the ones on the smaller fittings so the nuts are NOT interchangeable. If the nut won't thread over this fitting, its the wrong one don't force it.


Tighten tank seal

Thread the 90 degree fuel fitting over the protruding fuel fitting until it seats. I would suggest using RTV to seal this. if necessary turn the whole fitting to position the end of the fitting as shown


Install 90 degree fuel fitting

The tank is complete at this point. Since I use a one way vent valve, I use a very short piece of Tygon fuel tubing and attach it to the tank as shown. The tank is ready to be installed in a later step


Fuel Tank completed


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Next Step

Prepare left frame half

[carey shurley]

Main Shaft temporarily insertedFirst the left frame half is prepared by installing the frame spacers and the previously installed frame plates


Left frame initial assembly

Thread the two fuel tank retainer posts into the PEM nuts in the left frame in the positions shown. Use thread lock to secure them and use the flat spots on the end of each post to fully tighten them


Tank retainer mount posts

Install the three frame spacers in the positions shown using M3 x 8 socket head bolts. Use thread lock and fully tighten


Left Frame spacer posts

Now install the radio and gyro trays assembled in the previous step. Use the M3 self tapping screws to install the gyro tray as shown, use a small amount of slow CA on the threads to retain them

finally install the radio tray oriented as shown using M3 x 8 socket head bolts and thread lock. Fully tighten these as well. NOTE - at this time you only install the upper and lower bolt, the middle bolt will be installed in a later step


Install upper frame plates

Next the main shaft bearing blocks will be installed. Here are the components and layouts for those parts


Main shaft bearing block components

First attach the servo posts as shown. The posts are identical however the bearing blocks are not. The upper bearing block has three bearing retaining bolts.

Note that the posts have a radius on one end and are more square on the other. On the top block the radius should be on the top and on the middle block it should be on the bottom of the post


Servo post orientation

The anti-rotation guide also attaches to the upper block. Use thread lock and fully tighten


Servo posts installed

the lower main bearing block can be installed as shown in the elongated holes. Use flat washers as shown. Do not apply thread lock or fully tighten at this time


Lower Main Bearing block

now install the middle bearing block. This is the one without the three lower retaining bolts. Use 3mm socket head bolts, apply thread lock but don't tighten yet


Middle Main Bearing Block

now the upper main bearing block can be attached as shown. Use 3mm socket head bolts and thread lock. Don't fully tighten them yet.


Upper Main Bearing Block

find the mainshaft and insert it through the bearings to ensure they properly align. Go ahead and fully tighten the six M3x6 socket head bolts that retain the bearing blocks




Here you can see the bolt positions for the bearing blocks from the outside of the left frame half


Main Bearing block bolts

Now install the bearing block connector plate using M3 socket bolts. Install with thread lock and fully tighten


Bearing Block connector

go ahead and remove the main shaft from the assembly and set it aside for later.

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Next Step

Install Clutch Block Assembly

[carey shurley]

In this step the clutch bell and block will be assembled and installed on the left frame half. Here you can see the components needed


Clutch Block Components

first insert the pinion gear into the clutch bell. As you can see, it fits into a sprag bearing. Before putting the gear in oil the sprag with Tri-Flow oil. Be careful not to get so much oil in that it spills into the clutch bell


Pinion gear position

align the gear with the bearings, push and twist and the gear will easily slide into the sprag bearing as shown


Pinion gear installed

Now the clutch pinion is inserted into the clutch bearing block. There are two bearings in the block, the pinion will only fit into one. Thats the lower bearing. This fits snug but you can use green thread lock on this if you want


Bearing block position

Here is the assembled clutch/pinion/block


Pinion gear inserted

now flip the bell over and insert the start shaft as shown


Start shaft inserted

push the shaft all the way in, you should see a shaft flat as shown, this is where the set screw on the start coupler will seat


Start shaft flat

Install the start coupler on the start shaft such that one of the two set screws aligns with the start shaft flat. Use thread lock and fully tighten both set screws


Start coupler installed

the completed clutch block assembly is now ready to be installed on the left frame. The frame is drilled to support the three std gear ratios, 7.29 (17 tooth), 6.88 (18 tooth- Standard) and 6.52 (19 tooth). The relationship of the holes will be explained next


Clutch block mount holes

go ahead and position the completed clutch block and install the front M3 socket bolt and washer with thread lock as shown, just don't tighten it yet. Here's where you can see how the rear block hole will align with the frame holes. A different hole in both the block and frame will be used depending on which pinion gear is being installed.

For the std 18 tooth pinion, the center block/frame hole will be used. For the 17 tooth pinon the rear block/frame hole (closer to mainshaft) will be used and for the 19 tooth pinion the front block/frame hole (further from mainshaft) will be used.


Clutch block alignment closeup

Install the remaining M3 bolt and washer with thread lock in the correct hole but don't fully tighten


Clutch block mounted

Now use two M3 x 10 socket head bolts and connect the bearing blocks as shown. Use thread lock and fully tighten. Now go back and fully tighten the two bearing block mount bolts on the outside of the frame


Connect clutch block to main shaft block

Here's how the left frame assembly should look at this point


Frame view with clutch installed

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Next Step

Install right frame plate

[carey shurley]

In this step the right frame half will be installed on the previously assembled left frame

here are the parts needed to install the right frame half


Right Frame Parts

first install the two frame bumpers on the inside of the frame as shown using M3x6mm socket head bolts. Use thread lock and fully tighten


Right Frame bumpers

Now lay the right frame into place and install all of the M3 socket head and self tapping screws shown. Use thread lock on the bolts and slow CA on the self tapping screws

NOTE - Don't tighten the two lower main bearing bolts, that will be done in a later step. Also note that again as on the left frame do not install the center mount bolt on the radio tray


Right Frame Installed

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Next Step

Prepare Motor

[carey shurley]

WG requires the RC format of the Zenoah motor. This motor has typically been used in RC cars and depending on the source will come with its own clutch.

If you're not familiar with this motor, its basically self contained and WG doesn't require many additional parts to mount it

Here's a typical 27cc Zenoah RC motor


Stock Zenoah RC Format Motor

Depending on the source it will include this clutch/housing pre-installed. If you acquire this from one of the modifiers, it will not likely include these parts


Stock Zenoah RC clutch/housing

First, if you're going to retain the pull starter, it needs to be turned where you can access it once in the model. Use a phillips screwdriver to remove the four retaining bolts, remove the pull starter, replace it in the position shown and re-install the mount bolts and fully tighten them


Reposition pull starter

Use a piston lock or other acceptable method to lock the piston on the motor and use a 14mm socket or wrench to loosen and remove the two clutch mount bolts, washers and the clutch shoes themselves.


Remove clutch mount bolts

Whats left is the clutch mount plate. Using a 10mm socket/wrench LOOSEN but don't yet remove the bolt that retains this plate


Loosen clutch plate retaining bolt

Use an appropriate wheel puller to remove the clutch plate. The tool shown is the Zenoah removeal tool. Once the plate pops loose, finish removing clutch plate mount bolt and remove the clutch plate.


Loosen clutch mount plate bolt

Using an M5 hex driver remove the four bolts that mount the clutch housing and remove the housing. It will not be needed


Remove clutch housing

When prepped, the motor will look like this. If you've gotten a modifed motor from TRM Power or BH Hanson, it will likely look like this. If so, you must have a Zenoah RC clutch for the next step


Engine ready for mounting

NOTE: If you are using a Chun Yang (CY) version of the RC motor, or have the CY cooling shroud installed you will need to make a modification to it in order to install the motor in the chassis. The CY shroud has more area as shown in this side by side view. In the area where the red arrows point, you will need to remove about 5mm of material to more closely match the Zenoah version. This can be done pretty easily but it won't be obvious that you need to do this until you mount the motor.

If you are using a Zenoah manufactured motor (or cooling shroud) no modifications are required


CY Shroud Modification

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Next Step

Complete motor assembly

[carey shurley]

In this step the remaining required parts will be added to the motor so that its ready to installed in the frames

Here you can see all the parts, the clutch related parts are not included in the kit but are std zenoah clutch parts


Parts to complete motor

to be more specific, these are the zenoah RC clutch parts needed for the assembly. If your motor didn't come with these parts, they can be purchased as a set. The parts needed are the clutch shoes, the mount plate and the mount bolts/washers


Zenoah clutch parts needed

first thing to do is to install (or reinstall if you removed it in the last step). This will self align very accurately. Use a piston stop in place of the spark plug and tighten the mount bolt using blue thread lock. Do NOT overtighten this bolt it is not that hard to break the head off of it.


Install clutch mount plate

now you can drop the engine mount on the engine. You can install it before the clutch mount plate but it easily slips over it as shown. The mount is symmetrical so you just need to align it as shown


Position engine mount

The tolerances on the mount are very tight so its recommended that you install the M5 mount bolts in an X pattern, two at a time as shown here. Use blue thread lock but don't fully tighten these yet


Install initial engine mount bolts

Now put the other two M5 bolts in with blue thread lock and fully tighten all four engine bolts. The mount will self align


Complete engine mount installation

So here is the Zenoah clutch. As you can see it has a great deal of contact area. Its a bit different than most helicopter clutches in that the liner is on the shoes not in the clutch bell. If they are damaged they can be easily replaced.

This is a trailing edge clutch so its important that its mounted in the correct direction. Looking at the clutch shoes there are arrows stamped into each show those indicate the correct direction and they are on what will be the top of the shoes


Clutch Direction

flip the clutch shoe assembly over and drop the two special clutch spacers in the mount holes as shown. Use no thread locks or compounds


Clutch lower spacers

Now flip the shoe assembly back over and set them on the clutch mount plate as shown, being careful to make sure the previously installed spacers don't fall out


Clutch positioned

Take the two spring washers from the original clutch, these are the ones with the larger opening and are not flat and position them on the clutch shoes as shown


Clutch Spring Washer position

Now take the two clutch shoe mount bolts and insert them through the start shaft yoke as shown. Now insert this assembly through the two spring washers, clutch shoes and spacers and start to thread them into the clutch mount plate. Use blue thread lock but not too much


Starter yoke positioned

using a 14mm open span wrench continue to tighten the two bolts until they are fully seated and are flat on the yoke. These should be tight but you don't have to kill them


Tighten clutch bolts

use a light grease, similar to the MA hydrogen grease in the one way start bearing. Apply just enough to coat the inside bearing


Lubricate one-way bearing

As they come out of the box, the carb throttle plate is not in the correct position. For now, remove the phillips head screw and the plate and set them asid for now. When you loosen or tighten the small mount bolt I recommend that you hold the plate with pliers or your fingers. This prevents pressure from possibly being placed on the throttle butterfly which could be damaged

this will be reinstalled in a later step


Remove carb arm

Now flip the motor so you can access the four 5mm socket head bolts that hold the fan shroud on the motor. Remove them now. The shroud will remain in place by the two phillips head bolts at the top of the shroud


Remove fan shroud bolts

Now fit the motor mount plate over the pull started and against the fan shroud as shown. In fact it will only fit in one direction on the motor so alignment is straightforward. The aluminum frame mounts installed on this plate in step one will be on the same side of the plate as the motor.

take the 5mm bolts previously removed and re-install them by threading them through the motor plate, fan shroud and back into the motor. Use blue thread lock


Install motor plate

this completes the motor assembly and as shown it is ready to be installed in the frame.


Motor ready for installation

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Next Step

Install Motor

[carey shurley]

The motor assembly built in the two previous steps will be installed in the frame now

Just like with the clutch bearing block, the engine mount has three sets of mount holes. The CENTER hole is for the stock 18 tooth pinion gear. The holes to the "left" of center are for the 19 tooth pinion and the holes to the "right" of center are for the 17 tooth pinion.


Engine mount holes - engine mount

As with the clutch bearing block the engine mount bolts align with one of the three sets of holes in the frame. For the stock 18 tooth pinion, the center holes on the frame will be used


Engine mount holes - frame

here's how the frame and engine mount fit together. The tabs on the engine mount as well as the frame mounts on the lower motor plate fit between the frame halves


Engine/frame relationship

As you push the two components together, the start shaft installed earlier in the clutch has to align and engage into the one way bearing on top of the starter yoke mounted on top of the clutch as shown


Clutch/bell/start shaft relationship

Push the components together, this will require very little pressure. Now mount one of the M3x12 socket head bolts and 3mm washer into the correct set of holes on the frame/engine mount


Engine mount bolt position

here's where they go on the left side


Engine mount bolts - left

and again here on the right side

use blue thread lock. I would suggest either spinning the motor over using a spin starter and the hex coupler on the top of the clutch or pull the motor over a few times with the pull starter before fully tightening the four engine mount bolts.


Engine mount bolts - right

now you can thread the M3x8 socket head bolts into the center frame plate mount, first on one side


Install left center motor plate bolt

then the other. Use blue thread lock on these but don't fully tighten them just yet


Install right center motor plate bolt

Flip the model over so you can access the bottom of the motor plate. Remove, apply blue thread lock and reinstall the two M3 socket bolts that retain the center frame mount on the motor plate. Fully tighten these

now go back and fully tighten the the left and right socket bolts previously installed into the center motor plate mount


Tighten center motor plate bottom bolts

this completes the motor installation process.


Engine installed - left view

you can see how the assembly looks from both left and right views.


Engine installed - right view

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Next Step

Install Landing Gear

[carey shurley]

The Landing gear will be installed in this step. The landing gear on this model consists of four separate struts as well as the typical tubes. The struts have an alignment pin and are bolted into a cross frame spacer

These are the parts needed to install the landing gear


Landing Gear Parts

first install the set screws into each of the landing gear struts as shown. Thread them into the tube cavity to open the holes and then back them out so that the round open portion is unobstructed by the set screw


LG Set Screws Installed

Install one of the front landing gear doublers. Use an M3x8 socket head bolt that threads into the front mount on the motor plate as shown. Don't fully tighten yet


Right Front LG Doubler

Now install one of the rear landing gear doublers. Use an M3 x 8 socket head bolt that threads into the rear mount on the motor plate as shown. Don't fully tighten yet


Right Rear LG Doubler

install both doublers on the other side of the frame as shown


Left LG Doublers

Flip the model so you can work on the bottom of the motor plate. Now fully tighten the M3 socket bolts that hold the rear frame mount on the motor plate. Use blue thread lock.


Tighten rear motor plate bottom bolts

Fully tighten the M3 socket bolts that hold the front frame mount on the motor plate. Use blue thread lock


Tighten Front motor plate bottom bolts

insert one of the landing gear mount spacers between the front frame doublers as shown


Front LG Mount Spacer

Thread one of the M4 bolts into the mount hole on one of the struts. Here you can see how its going to mount


Left Front LG Strut Position

using blue thread lock, install the left front LG strut and fully tighten. It will fit tighty against the frame as shown


Left Front LG Strut Install

now install the other front strut as shown


Right Front LG Strut Install

position the rear landing gear strut mount spacer as shown


Rear LG Strut Mount Spacer

Install the rear landing gear struts in the same way as the front struts were installed using blue thread lock on the bolts


Rear LG Struts Installed

With the struts installed, the model will look as shown

At this point you can fully tighten the bolts that were initially inserted to hold the landing gear doubler plates and thread into the lower motor plate mounts. Use blue thread lock.


LG Struts Installed

Slip the landing gear tubes through the cylindrical holes in the landing gear struts as shown. Approx 26mm should protrude past the back of the rear struts on each side Align the tubes so that the front curved bend is vertical and parallel to each other


LG Tubes positioned

tighten the set screws previously installed in the landing gear struts as shown. Tighten these firmly to ensure that the landing gear tubes can't move or rotate


Tighten LG set screws

at this point, the landing gear are fully installed.


Landing Gear Installed

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Next Step

Install Fuel Tank

[carey shurley]

Using the fuel tank previously assembled, it will be plumbed and installed in this step

here are the parts needed


Parts to mount fuel tank

First attach the tank bumpers to the tank retainer plate using M3x6 socket head bolts. Use blue thread lock and fully tighten


Mount Tank bumpers to tank retaining plate

Here's where the tank will fit into the frame and the two posts where the tank retainer plate will mount


Tank Mounting Position

Fuel tank is plumbed here. There is a fuel feed, return, vent and fill line. If you want more detail on why I plumb the tank this way, visit Tank Plumbing My Way

This method is not mandatory, its just a proven way to do it. The tank must at minimum have a fuel feed and a vent


Fuel Tank Plumbed

So the tank has recesses molded into it, those recesses will seat on the tank bumpers you see in the background on the right frame


Fuel Tank Position

Insert the fuel tank, you'll need to turn it at an angle and ease it into position


Insert fuel tank

Move it around until the right side bumpers seat into the tank and the plumbing is organized


Seat Fuel tank

Mount the fuel tank retainer as shown using M3x8 socket bolts. Use blue thread lock and fully tighten


Fuel tank retainer installed

Now route and connect the fuel tubing as shown. There are a couple of options. The tubing can go outside of the fuel tank retainer as shown here


Fuel Plumbing Option A

or the fuel tubing can be captured inside of the fuel tank retainer. Both will work


Fuel Plumbing Option B

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Next Step

Install Main Drive Gear

[carey shurley]

The main drive will be installed in this step

here are the main drive parts


Main drive parts

first seat the main gear on the drive hub. Insert the hub from the flat side of the gear as shown. Install the five M3x8 flat head bolts. Use blue thread lock and fully tighten


Main gear installed on hub

Thread the two M3 bolts into the clamp holes on the bottom of the hub. Don't tighten or use thread lock yet


Install hub clamp bolts

Insert the main gear into the chassis as shown. The gear has to fit above the shoulder on the clutch hub to properly engage with the pinion gear


Position Main gear

insert the main shaft through the upper main bearing blocks and into the drive gear. The proper end of the shaft to insert is the one with the longer distance between the shaft end and the mount hole


Insert main shaft

push the shaft through the gear and into the bottom bearing block and rotate it as necessary to align the shaft hole with the drive hub as shown


Align hub/shaft holes

Insert the M4 shouldered bolt and flat washer through the flat side of the drive hub as shown


Install mount bolt

now spin the gear around and using the M4 lock nut, thread it over the M4 bolt. Note that the hub is machined such that the lock nut can be captured in the hub in the area shown

Fully tighten this bolt


Install main drive mount nut

Now tighten the two hub clamp bolts. Tighten them firmly usiing blue threadlock


Tighten Main drive clamp bolts

Using your fingers, press up against the bottom of the bottom main shaft bearing until it seats against the bottom of the main drive hub


Position lower bearing block

Now using blue threadlock, tighten the four M3 bearing block mount bolts/washers


Tighten lower bearing bolts

There will be no more need to spin or turn the motor over from this point so its okay to go ahead and install the spark plug. You'll need a wrench, the one that comes with the motors works fine as shown

fully tighten the plug until it seats


Install spark plug

Now install the plug cap on the spark plug. Make sure it is fully seated or you will encounter ignition issues.


Install plug cap

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Next Step

Rotor head control system

[carey shurley]

This step begins the assembly of the FBL rotor head. First up will be the swashplate

here are the parts needed to assemble the swashplate


Swashplate parts

Start by installing the bearing lash adjustment screws. Install the three set screws into the holes on the outside lower perimeter of the swashplate as shown. Use blue thread lock. Just snug these against the bearing. DO NOT TIGHTEN THESE. The purpose of these set screws is to adjust the lash in the swashplate bearing. You won't need to do this for quite some time but you'll do so by tightening these against the inner bearing. This will remove any slop that may develop over a long period of time.


Install bearing adjustment set screws

Install the four long 0109 control balls on the inner ring of the swashplate. Use blue thread lock. Note - the head with a flybar uses different balls here, refer to the assembly manual


Inner balls installed

Install the three short balls as shown on the mount points on the outer swashplate ring. Use blue thread lock.


Outer balls installed

finally install the anti-rotation stud into the center mount point on the outer swashplate ring as shown using blue thread lock


Anti-rotation stud installed

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Next Steps

Assemble rotor headblock

[carey shurley]

In this step the main rotor head will be assembled

This kit used the FBL rotorhead so it is featured. Practically gas helicopters have better overall performance using FBL rotor heads due to reduced air drag

Here are the parts needed to assemble the FBL rotorhead


FBL Rotorhead parts

First install the rotor head cap using the M3 x 14 socket bolt. use thread lock


Rotorhead cap installed

Now you can install the dampers in the head. The kit will probably come with std 80 durometer dampers which are clear/white. I would recommend the blue 90 durometer dampers shown

insert the rounded side into the head block cavities.


Damper position

These fit easily and must seat fully as shown


Dampers installed

Now select the swashplate drivers and links and assemble using the flat ended pins. Orient the parts as shown, you want the flat side of the pins to wind up on the inside of the followers


Swashplate driver pin positions

Push the pins on a hard surface to push them through the swashplate links. The end that protrudes has a channel cut in it


Swashplate driver pins inserted

Take the two retaining clips and slip one of each into each follower link pin as shown. Make sure it fully seats


Swashplate driver pin clips

Using an M3 button head bolt, install one of the follows in the orientation shown with blue thread lock and fully tighten. Make sure it moves freely


Swashplate follower installed

Now install the other follower as shown. Make sure you use thread lock and fully tighten


Swashplate followers installed

The followers will clip onto the swashplate in a later step


Swashplate follower positions

Take the blade axle and insert it through the previously installed dampers in the head block. Coat the axle and the inside of the dampers with a synthetic grease as you insert the axle. Center it in the head block


Blade axle inserted

Slip the two C/F axle spacers over the ends of the blade axle


Axle spacer positions

Select the blade arms and install the two blade arms as shown. Use two M3 x 8mm socket head bolts on each arm with blue thread lock. Tighten these carefully to seat the arm into the channel on the blade holder.


Install blade arms

Install the short balls into the threaded holes at the end of the blade arms using blue threadlock


Blade arm balls installed

Now slip one of the blade holders over the previously installed blade axle as shown. Make sure the spacer doesn't fall off before you put the holder on


Blade holder position

Go ahead and slip the other blade holder on as shown


Blade holder installed

Use the M5 socket bolts and the C/F washer with thread lock and thread them into the ends of the blade axles. These will cover the inner ring of the outer radial bearing in the blade holder


Blade arm retainer with washer

Using two M5 hex drivers, fully tighten the two blade retainer bolts. You don't have to try to kill these, just make sure they are tight and have thread lock on them


Tighten blade arm retainers

Insert the two M3 x 10mm socket head bolts into the headblock clamp holes as shown. Don't tighten these or use thread lock on them yet. They will be tightened in a later step


Install rotor head clamp bolts

Insert the M4 rotor head retaining bolt through the head as shown and partially thread on the M4 locknut. Don't tighten this yet


Rotorhead retaining bolt inserted

Insert the two blade retainer bolts and partially thread on the lock nuts as shown. Don't tighten them yet.


Install blade retainer bolts

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Next Step

Install Rotor Head

[carey shurley]

In this step the rotorhead will be installed onto the chassis

first the swashplate needs to be installed. It will simply slip over the mainshaft, position it as follows:


Swashplate on main shaft

the anti-rotation stud needs to fit inside the anti-rotation guide. Use your thumb to bend the guide slightly to allow the pin to slip into the slot at the top of the guide


Engage swashplate

now that the guide pin is engaged, the swashplate can drop to the bottom of the shaft as shown


Swashplate engaged

the rotor head slips over the mainshaft as shown. The rotorhead block is a little difficult to engage on the shaft, you may need to rock it slightly or rotate the shaft and it will then drop in easily


Rotor head positioned for install

push the head down on the mainshaft and rotate the mainshaft until the holes align between the two parts


Align rotor head mount hole

Insert the M4 shoulder bolt on the round recess side of the rotor head block through the aligned holes. The locknut will engage in the square recess on the other side of the head block. Fully tighten this bolt


Install rotor head mount bolt

Now tighten the two M3 rotor head clamp bolts on each side of the rotor head block. These need to be tight but not so tight as to distort the head block. Use blue thread lock


Tighten rotorhead clamp

Engage the links on the swashplate followers to two opposing balls on the swashplate inside ring as shown


Engage swashplate followers

at this point the rotor head installation is complete


Rotor head installed

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Next Step

Assemble Rear Tail Transmission

[carey shurley]

This step will begin the assembly of the tail rotor

these are the components needed to assemble the tail rotor transmission


T/R Transmission Parts

Start by installing one 0107 ball into the ball slider, use thread lock


Install T/R Slider ball

Install the tail slider ball cup onto the bellcrank as shown using the M2 socket head bolt and thread lock


Install T/R Bellcrank Cup

Install another 0107 ball onto the bellcrank as shown using thread lock


Install T/R Bellcrank ball

Install the c/f bellcrank support onto the t/r transmission as shown using two M3 button head screws and thread lock. The correct side of the support has reliefs milled for the bolt heads.


Install T/R Bellcrank Support

Use the long M3 socket bolt to install the bellcrank onto the support using blue thread lock as shown. Make sure you don't use so much thread lock as to get it in the bearing


Install T/R Bellcrank

Slide the t/r slider over the t/r shaft as shown and position the slider ball and bellcrank cup as shown


Position T/R Slider with bellcrank

Now pull the slider down onto the shaft while moving the bellcrank such that the slider ball and the bellcrank cup fully engage


Engage T/R Slider and Bellcrank

this completes assembly of the rear t/r transmission

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Next Step

Install T/R Hub/Blade Holders

[carey shurley]

Now that the T/R transmission is done, we can assemble the T/R hub, blade holders and optionally blades

Here are the parts needed to assemble the T/R hub


Tail rotor grip parts

Start by installing the control balls in each T/R blade holder as shown using blue thread lock. The bearings are factory installed in each hub


Install blade holder control balls

Slip one of the holders over the tail rotor hub as shown. Look inside the grip and you'll see that the threaded end of the hub will be flush with the outside radial bearing. When you push the holder over the hub the outer radial bearing may push out, if so carefully push it back into place


Blade holder position

Slip the other blade holder over the other side of the hub. These are going to be retained with M3 socket head bolts and washers as shown


Blade holders installed

Carefully apply blue thread lock to the threads on the M3 bolts, add a washer and thread it into the ends of the T/R hub as shown


Tighten a grip

You can either tighten the holders individually by gripping the T/R hub or you can tighten them both by using two hex drives as shown. Make sure you clean the threads and use thread lock on these bolts


Tighten Both grips

If you are going to install T/R blades later, you can install the T/R hub on the previously assembled T/R transmission now. Use the two M3 dog point set screws with blue thread lock


T/R hub attachment position

Carefully slip the hub over the shaft and rotate it until you can see the "dimples" in the shaft through the threaded holes on the T/R hub. Then loosely install one of the set screws and then flip the hub over and fully install the other one. Finally fully tighten the first set screw. The reason for this is to ensure the correct alignment of the set screws into the dimples. One of them will fit very tightly.


Install T/R hub

The M3 T/R blade bolts are inserted from the flat side of the T/R blade holders


T/R blade bolts

And the retaining nuts will be installed on the "notched" side of the T/R blade holders as shown


T/R blade nuts

If you're going to install the T/R blades now, do so before you mount the hub on the T/R shaft


Optional - Install Blades

Make sure you balance these on a wheel balancer. Add weight to the light side using washers or tape until they balance as shown. Then the hub assembly can be installed as previously shown


Balance T/R Blades

Once the hub is in place, snap the control links over the control balls. The easiest way to do this is to position so that they both are resting on top of each ball. Then snap them on one at a time. If you don't follow this procedure, you'll find that you'll have to bend the second link significantly to get it align on the ball


Install Control links

If you haven't installed T/R blades yet, here's the completed T/R assembly


T/R Completed - No Blades

If you have installed T/R blades, here's the completed assembly with blades.


T/R Completed - With Blades

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Next Step

Tail Boom - Front Transmission

[carey shurley]

This step will begin the assembly of the tail boom. The front tail rotor transmission will be built and installed next. Here are the parts needed for this step


T/R Front Transmission Parts

Select the tail boom clamp that does NOT have the three threaded holes in its face and slip it over the front of the tail boom as shown. The "front" of the tail boom is the end where the pre-drilled hole is right at the end of the boom.


Inner boom clamp installed

Now find the transmission assembly, it is pre-assembled from the factory, and connect it to the remaining tail boom clamp


Front tranmission components

Use M3 x 12 socket head bolts and blue thread lock. This assembly will self align so fully tighten the bolts


Combine boom/clamp transmission

Slip this assembly over the front of the tail boom so that the threaded hole in the front boom clamp aligns with the pre-drilled hole in the tail boom. Install an M3 x 6 socket head bolt in the threaded top center hole on the front boom clamp as shown with thread lock and tighten it fully so that it protrudes through the hole in the tail boom. If this does not fit easily through the hole, slightly reposition the clamp until it will


Install front transmission

Find the c/f support plate and install it between the two boom clamps as shown using M3 x 6 socket head bolts. Slide the rear boom clamp until it the holes align. You can fully tighten these bolts with thread lock.

Note: this is the same plate used on the Nitro and electric versions. On those versions the plate is directional and must be installed as shown to clear the T/R bellcrank. On this model the plate can be installed with the notch on either the left or right side.


Install Boom mount support plate

Now find the M3 x 14 socket head bolts, apply blue thread lock and insert them into the clamp holes as shown


Insert boom clamp bolts

Tighen the boom clamp bolts firmly. You don't have to kill these but the clamps need to fully engage the boom.


Front transmission completed

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Next Step

Assemble T/R Drive Tube

[carey shurley]

In this step the tube drive will be assembled and inserted into the tail boom

In addition to the tail boom previously addressed in the prior step, you will need these parts for this step


Parts for tube drive

Find the two tube drive supports and the four o-rings and slip the o-rings onto the supports as shown


Install O-rings on supports

Take the two supports and slip them over the aluminum tube drive. It doesn't matter which direction they go on, just make sure they both go on in the same orientation. Look inside the supports to make sure you see the same view of the bearing. Otherwise one is backwards


Drive Supports - Orientation

The instructions are specific that these supports should not be installed in equi-distant positions. So the first one should be 250mm from one end (doesn't matter which one

The other support should be 265mm from the other end of the tube. These will be glued into place using CA.

An easy way to do this is to put some tape on the drive at the positions shown so that the bearings slide into the correct position.


Position for first drive support

To prevent any resonance in the tube drive during operation, the supports should be installed in slightly different positions, not equidistant from each other


Position for second drive support

Then apply some CA to the tube and then slide the bearings back against the tape. When the CA dries, just remove the tape. Make sure you let the CA dry for at least 1 hour before attempting to push it into the tail boom in a later step


Drive support positions

Insert the two drive ends into the tube drive and fix their respective positions each with three M2.5 socket head bolts. Align carefully, use blue thread lock and fully tighten.


Install tube drive ends

Put some oil inside the tail boom, I typically use a thin silicone spray lubricant, and then use it to lube the o-rings on the tube drive. Now push one end of the tube drive into the tail boom as shown


Insert tube drive

You are going to push this in until the tube drive end engages in the front t/r transmission drive gear. The three ribs on the drive end will fit into the three recesses on the front drive gear. You will have to slightly rotate the front gear as well as the tube drive as you push on the tube to engage these parts


Front transmission engagement

Push the tube in until it fully seats in the front drive gear. When complete this is the amount of tube drive you should see protruding from the rear of the tail boom


Tube drive - final position - rear

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Next Step

Complete Tail Boom Assembly

[carey shurley]

In a previous step the rear t/r transmission was assembled, in this step it will be installed

These are the parts needed for this step


Tail Boom - Parts to complete

First take the four control rod standoffs and slip them over the back of the tail boom as shown


Slip control rod standoffs onto boom

The standoffs won't be finally oriented until the electronics installation but you can put them into their correct position now. The center of the rear support should be 3" from the back of the tail boom. The other three standoffs should have a center to center offset distance from each other of 6-3/8". For now orient them so that the extension for the rod is at what will be the bottom of the tail boom


Standoff positions

The previously assembled tail rotor transmission can be installed now. It installs onto the tail boom as shown


T/R Transmission position

In order to seat the t/r transmission on the tail boom, the previously installed tube drive end must engage with the drive gear in the rear transmission. This process will be identical to that used for the front drive gear.


T/R Transmission engagement points

The transmission slips over the back of the tail boom such that the front hole that will be used to mount the vertical fin aligns with the hole in the rear of the tail boom


T/R Transmission/Boom alignment

Push and twist the transmission onto the boom until the proper holes align. This will be a tight fit. You may need to slightly rotate the t/r hub in order to align the drive gear engagement points with those on the tube drive.


Align t/r transmission/boom hole

Now you can mount the vertical fin with M3 socket head bolts. Attach the fin initially with the shorter bolt at the rear of the fin then thread the longer bolt through the fin, transmission housing and through the aligned hole in the tail boom. Use thread lock on both of these. If the front bolt doesn't pass easily through the tail boom, it may not be properly aligned. If necessary use a rod or other item smaller than an M3 bolt to help align the mount holes


Mount vertical fin

Install the M3 x 8 socket bolt on the bottom of the transmission housing using blue thread lock and fully tighten it.


Tighten transmission clamp

Install the remaining black control rod link onto one end of the long t/r control rod. Thread it on until about 1/2 of the thread are covered. This will be final adjusted after the servos are installed.


Install control rod link

Slid the t/r control rod into the control rod guides on the tail boom from the front of the tail boom. It fits very tightly through the guides, you will need to spin the rod to essentially thread it through each of the four guides. Leave this as is for now, the other link will be installed in the next step


Control Rod inserted from front

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Next Step

Install Tail Boom